


Wildflower Promises

by wackyjacqs



Series: Bizarre Holidays [60]
Category: Stargate SG-1
Genre: Episode: s08e18 Threads, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-28
Updated: 2019-02-28
Packaged: 2019-11-07 04:50:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,464
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17953913
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wackyjacqs/pseuds/wackyjacqs
Summary: Fate – not to mention her father – had other plans, however, and he justhadto mention the fact that she was supposed to be choosing her wedding flowers. His not-so-innocent comment had annoyed Sam, but it was nothing compared to the frustration and disappointment she felt when the General insisted that she go.Pick flowers.





	Wildflower Promises

**Author's Note:**

> Written for ‘Floral Design Day’ (28 February).

Sam glanced at her watch and winced; almost three hours after she’d left the base, she had unwittingly found herself back there.

She jabbed a finger against the button for Level 19 and as the elevator doors slid closed, she closed her eyes and let one of its walls take her weight, sighing as the coldness from the metal cooled her skin.

Today was meant to be her day off. A day off to go with Pete and pick her wedding flowers. Flowers for a wedding that was only ten days away.

Her breath caught – and not for the first time – at the realization.

Despite a day filled with various wedding planning tasks, Sam woke at 0530 and managed to sneak out of the house while Pete continued to sleep. She quickly arrived at the base and locked herself in her lab for an hour before an unscheduled off-world activation had her running to the control room. The visitor turned out to be Teal’c returning with bad news. As a result, it was left to Sam to phone the general and drag him into the SGC earlier than he’d expected for the day.

Following a frustrating briefing and an even more frustrating interruption from Pete complaining about her disappearance – and then her excuse that there was a very likely chance she’d be unable to attend the florists later – Sam wanted nothing more than to return and hide in the sanctuary of her lab.

Fate – not to mention her father – had other plans, however, and he just _had_ to mention the fact that she was supposed to be choosing her wedding flowers. His not-so-innocent comment had annoyed Sam, but it was nothing compared to the frustration and disappointment she felt when the General insisted that she go. _Pick flowers._

Sam let her head fall back against the elevator wall as she groaned loudly, her exasperation echoing in the small space. She had deliberately ‘forgotten’ to inform General O’Neill of her specific plans for her day off. Just like she’d ‘forgotten’ to tell him that she had selected a cake last week, or that she she’d ‘forgotten’ to say about the dress fitting the week before that.

It wasn’t necessarily that she wanted to keep the details of her wedding a secret; she just didn’t want the general to know about them. And if he did happen to inadvertently hear about some element of the wedding – via Daniel or otherwise – she always felt a degree of shame.

The elevator pinged cheerily, breaking her thoughts, and Sam quickly decided not to dwell on why the revelation bothered her more than it should. Especially when she was days away from marrying another man.

She pushed away from the wall and as she made her way towards her lab, her thoughts returned to her father. She could tell that something was on his mind, but what exactly that was, Sam didn’t know. She wasn’t sure if it was Pete, or the current situation with Dakara, or even his still fraught relationship with the Tok’ra. Deep down though, she had a horrible feeling that it was something else entirely.

When they’d met in the mess shortly after Pete’s visit, he had looked ill. And even though he had insisted that he was fine, just tired, Sam could see the thin sheen of sweat that had formed on his brow as he got to his feet. As Sam watched him walk away, her concern only increased. His movements were rigid, heavy. Almost as if it was a chore for him to lift and place one foot in front of the other.

With a shake of her head, Sam resolved to check on her father as soon as she’d paid a visit to her lab. She turned the corner and started down another eerily empty hallway, allowing her shoulders to slump as she felt the weight of the world rest on them once more. Her mind was racing and she desperately felt like she was being pulled in a number of directions, and for the first time in her eight years at Stargate Command, she didn’t have any bright or ridiculous idea to save Earth. Instead, she felt like she was quickly losing control – and it terrified her.

She wondered if Daniel was alive or dead. She questioned whether Teal’c and Bra’tac had been able to send a message to the Free Jaffa, and what would subsequently happen to the weapon on Dakara following the fallout. She hesitated at the reason for what was really preoccupying her father. Then, there was the uncertainty surrounding Anubis’ reported disappearance – was he really gone, or was he planning one final attack? Would they survive if he did? She considered whether she should postpone her wedding – or if she should go through with it at all – and if she should talk to the General about the issue.

Sighing, Sam ran a hand across her forehead and wished that she could stop thinking and just do it.

Her head throbbed with every step she took nearer to her lab and her pants pocket seemingly began to vibrate in time with her footsteps. She paused, looked down and frowned when she realized her cell phone was actually ringing. She pulled it from her pocket and saw the caller ID.

_Pete._

All of a sudden, her head felt like was about to explode and she wondered what was actually the source of her pain.

She let her cell ring.

The more she thought about it, the more she became convinced that her headache was down to the selection of bright – and completely garish – flowers she had been confronted with at the florists. Her head, and heart, hadn’t been in the decision-making – again. And so, like the majority of their wedding plans, Sam had just gone along with Pete’s choice.

She pulled a face as she recalled the bouquet of red, orange and yellow flowers he’d selected.

They were lovely flowers, but they just weren’t _her_.

As she reached her lab, her cell phone rang again and without a second thought, she switched it off and threw it into a drawer in the desk. She sat down heavily in her chair and let her head fall into her hands. She felt trapped, with no idea how to break free.

Sam wasn’t sure how long she stayed that way, but when she straightened, she was surprised to see a small, yet beautiful posy of flowers on the bench. She knew they were Forget-Me-Nots, as they were her mother’s favorite. Slowly, and with shaking hands, she reached out and lifted them to her nose. A small smile graced her lips and she let her eyes drift closed as she inhaled their delicate fragrance.

A moment later, she detected a second fragrance and her eyes snapped open. The scents may have been mixed together, but Sam knew that particular scent anywhere.

She glanced again at the flowers and noticed a small card almost hidden in the middle. She set the posy down to read the message.

_Sam,_

_It seems you’ve been quite forgetful with your wedding plans lately._

_When you’re married, try not to forget about us too._

_J._

Sam’s eyes filled with tears and she couldn’t stop the choked sob that escaped. She knew that the ‘us’ included Daniel and Teal’c, but a part of her tried so hard to read between the lines where ‘us’ was just the two of _them_. Sam and Jack.

Movement out of the corner of her eye caught her attention and she glanced up to see the general leaning against the door jamb, his hands shoved deep into the pockets of his BDU pants. However, despite the relaxed stance he tried to exude, the tight set of his jaw and the pain she saw flash through those chocolate-brown eyes unearthed his true feelings.

A single tear slipped down Sam’s cheek but before she could say or do anything, the general offered her a sad smile, then turned and left, leaving her to stare at an empty doorway.

_Try not to forget about us._

She glanced back to the flowers and the realization hit her full force.

_Us._

Pete Shanahan might not know her at all, but Jack O’Neill knew _everything_ about her.

He always had.

Gripping the edge of the bench, Sam desperately tried to force her lungs to work.

She didn’t need to think things over anymore. She knew what she had to do.

She picked up the card with Jack’s scribbled, but heartfelt note, and took a deep breath before she made her way out of her lab.

She needed to see him, talk to him. She needed to do it now.

She would never forget Jack.

If she was honest, she never had.

**Author's Note:**

> And that’s a wrap for February!


End file.
